In an open letter to The Guardian, Glastonbury's co-founder Emily Eavis praises the rapper and says that headliners for the fest have never been limited to rock.
- March 21, 2015
AceShowbiz -
It looks like Kanye West will still be among headliners of this year's Glastonbury despite the fact that there are thousands of fans who disagree. The festival's co-founder Emily Eavis defended the decision to book the rapper as she offered her thought on the matter in an open letter she wrote to The Guardian.
As previously reported, a petition was recently launched on Change.org by a fan who wanted rock acts to replace West to play the festival traditionally known as a rock event. The petition has been signed by more than 100,000 supporters.
In her open letter, Eavis first made it clear that those acts headlining the festival were never limited to rock. "To say that our headliners should be 'rock' is, I think, a bit silly," she said before pointing out that they had also made non-rock artists like Jay-Z and Beyonce Knowles headliners in the past.
She went on praising West, "One of the world's biggest superstars and a music legend, always interesting, never boring. He has agreed to play a festival where headliners get paid a fraction of their normal rate in support of Oxfam, Water Aid and Greenpeace as well as thousands of other worthy causes. We think that's pretty great."
Eavis also voiced her opinion on people who have signed the petition and attacked West on internet. "I have such faith in humanity, but believe me, some of the vitriol being thrown around this week has made me question the dark underbelly of the web," she said.
"Who are those people silently shouting in disgust, throwing out threats from behind their screens? It certainly isn't pleasant to be on the receiving end of that. I can't even imagine how it makes Kanye feel," she added.
